Music
Photo: Ed Sheeran is the global superstar whose most recent album was the January 2017 ÷. It's already yielded two top-10 singles in the U.S., "Castle on the Hill" and "Shape of You." He also recorded
Music
The Broadway Avenue block party known as Brew Five Three (a play on Tacoma's area code - duh) may have only reached its fifth birthday, but it grew so fast it's already reached full maturity. Maybe that's one reason why you must be 21 or older to gain admission. Of course,
Music
With screams for Bruno Mars' 24K Magic World Tour stop still echoing in the corridors enclosing the Tacoma Dome, this week brings two massive top-40 acts to the same venue - and that's before Lady Gaga draws her thousands of little monsters next weekend. This is shaping up to be
Stage
A YouTube transfer of Brian Regan standup special, I Walked on the Moon (ironically prefaced with the caption, "This DVD is for private home viewing only"), is boldly dubbed: "Best Comedian Ever." That's debatable, to say the least, but it points to the enduring appeal of Regan's career since his
Music
Ben Harper is one of our more enduring pop-musical talents, beloved by critics and record buyers alike. It's surprising, then, to find he's never had what Billboard would call a bona-fide, top-10 radio hit. The closest he's come thus far was "Steal My Kisses," a sweet little number that reached
Outdoors
(Editors note: The Car Show and Grand Parade were listed incorrectly in the original story. Corrections to both the story and the calendar of events have been made. We apologize for any inconvenience.) It began with a budget of $500. In 1957, a group of downtown businessmen pooled their resources to
Features
This weekend, Boeing Employees Credit Union (BECU) and Emerald Queen Casino present the annual Taste of Tacoma celebration at Point Defiance Park. More than 30 local and regional eateries offer a variety of delectable dishes, along with more than 70 vendors of commercial and handcrafted items. Enjoy live music and
Music
"If I had been God," sings Roger Waters in "Déjà Vu," "I would've sired many sons, and I would not have suffered the Romans to kill even one." It's the brand of irreverent philosophy we've come to expect from Waters, best known as one of Pink Floyd's two front men from
Stage
Here's an unsolicited testimonial from someone who knows: "Tacoma (Comedy) Club is so cool," Christopher Titus declared. "(It's like) what I imagine the '60s vibe was, when comedy was this perfect, precious thing ... when Carlin was coming up ... Tacoma's got this smart vibe to it that I really
Music
For most people, the name "Joan Osborne" immediately brings to mind the smash hit "One of Us," which reached the Billboard top five in February 1996. If that's all you know about Joan Osborne, though, you're missing a voice that shifts from blues to folk to pop without missing a
Stage
Over the long, storied history of Saturday Night Live, two types of performers emerged as enduring successes. The first is a rangy, unpredictable juggernaut of comedy, a showboat for whom SNL's writers trip over themselves to generate flashy material. Bill Murray and Will Ferrell were that type, as is Kate
Stage
If you've ever seen Peter Shaffer's 1979 play Amadeus or the Oscar-winning 1984 film based on it, you know some of the story of Mozart's Requiem in D minor, K. 626 - but you probably know a clever fiction. Shaffer based his work on an 1830 Pushkin play, Mozart and
Music
In the summer of love, mid-July 1967, singer Judy Collins was one of the headliners of the famed Newport Folk Festival, along with Joan Baez, Arlo Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Muddy Waters. Collins also taught a workshop for songwriters; among its attendees were Montreal poet Leonard Cohen, whose song "Suzanne"
Stage
The musical Once, a hit four months ago at Broadway Center, features a charismatic, young street musician who falls in love, only to face seemingly insurmountable romantic competition. That's a fair description of Jacques Offenbach's La Périchole, the next Tacoma Opera production, except this time the romantic triangle takes a
Stage
For untrained listeners, a night at the symphony can be an intimidating prospect. Is it necessary to rent a tux, wear a monocle, understand French or Latin? Is there a secret handshake? That's where symphonic "pops" programs come in. They're happy compromises between the accessibility of pop-rock with all the
South Sound Cinema
A trip to the movies can seem like a fairly impersonal experience in 2017. We book our tickets on Fandango, carefully boxing out other pretenders to our favorite throne, the center seat right behind the aisle so our upcharged, 3-D glasses (recycled for "the environment" - riiiiight) give us the
Stage
"Well, it's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon, Minnesota ..." With those familiar words, listeners to A Prairie Home Companion on National Public Radio have delighted for decades to the small-town shenanigans related by master writer and storyteller Gary "Garrison" Keillor. Keillor hosted the show from 1974, when it
Stage
I've seen at least eight Cirque du Soleil productions, most recently the Avatar-themed Toruk in Portland, Oregon. It played like an ultra-high-tech riff on Walking With Dinosaurs, so it wasn't what I've come to adore about Cirque du Soleil - I like my Cirque mostly human-powered. Minutes into Luzia, however,
Stage
When Symphony Tacoma presents works by Beethoven and Mozart this Saturday - Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 19 and Symphony No. 29 in A major, K. 201, respectively - the concert will add extra treats for classical music lovers. For one thing, there'll be two bonus selections:
Features
The Capital Food & Wine Festival is an annual 501(c)(3) fundraiser for Saint Martin's University in Lacey. Al Eckroth, director of the first and second installments, describes it as "a huge annual block party, where neighbors and friends unite in a spirit of community." The festival "began in 1989 as a
